Speech by the sisters three: Jenna and Andrew

Thank you Andrew and Jenna for having us be a part of your special day.

Andrew was always pretty clever.

When we played house, he was the best banker he could be. He guarded that stack of Monopoly money with everything he had.

He drew up an air-tight contract to ensure that when he offered to pay me $5 an hour for playing "boy games" with him, he'd never actually have to pay out since I couldn't bear to stay in for the hour he had stipulated. Don't worry Andrew, there were times we wished that you had gotten a little brother too... just to save us from playing whatever you wanted to play.

And anyone who has ever had the pleasure of seeing the accounting books that Andrew had for his farm set -- keeping track of revenues, expenses, market prices and so on -- knows that this boy has a lot of brains.

That being said, we can say with full confidence that making the decision to marry Jenna was the smartest thing that Andrew has ever done.

Andrew and Jenna go together like peanut butter and jelly. She's sweet and he's stuck on her.

Welcome to our family Jenna.

Cheers, to Andrew and Jenna. To love, laughter, and happily ever after.

Speech: Meg and Stephen

Thank you Meghan and Stephen, for letting me be part of this incredible day.

A while back I received a rather inappropriate post card in the mail and was told by the new Mrs. Bartolo that it was my job to make sure she walked down the aisle this morning.

…I can tell you all that this was the easiest task I’ve ever been given.

From that first conversation detailing her run-in with a strange boy on the bus… to the ecstatic phone call in the middle of the night from Tobermory announcing their engagement… it’s never been of any doubt that these two would end up together.

Even when Meghan was not so impressed with her new husband, like the time I visited the pair and Meghan decided to take shots for every sip her increasingly intoxicated boyfriend was taking, her love for this man was apparent.

Even clutching the toilet bowl, insisting I hold her pukey hand in mine… Meghan talked of nothing but their future together. …Now that’s love.

From the many visits to Ottawa over the years, I’ve had the opportunity to witness Meghan and Steve’s love each other as well as their love for pushing each others’ buttons…

…And now they get to annoy each other for the rest of their lives.

People claim that fairy tales don’t exist but I beg to differ. The real fairy tales are the ones that we make ourselves. Contrary to the stories we read as kids, fairy tales aren’t always easy. Relationships aren’t easy. They take work. There will be bumps in the road. The important thing is that when you hit those rough times you remember why you got together in the first place.

For those of you who don’t know the story of Meghan and Stephen, you’re in for a real treat… a real modern day fairy tale.

You see, once upon a time, back around four years ago, there was this girl with a smile that could light up any room. As you can see, she’s doing it here and now with this room today. This girl was at the bus stop, with her eye on a mysterious hottie. Anyone who knows Meghan knows she’s nothing if not subtle. So she took off her dark sunglasses and began flirting with this boy in earnest once they had boarded the bus.

Giggles, the hair flip, the whole nine yards.

In order to speed up the process, our protagonist decided to give this mystery boy fair warning before her stop came up. Though she made everything so obvious, to her dismay, she received no acknowledgement from the boy. So she cut her losses and went on her merry way.

A few moments later, walking down Sparks Street, the girl turned around to find our mystery boy literally running down the street towards her. Being the suave girl she is, she decided to play it cool and slow her pace to let him catch up as she watched his reflection near in the windows beside her. As she was patiently waiting to cross the street, our boy gently taps her on the shoulder and calmly says….

“Excuse me, you were supposed to ask for my phone number.”

After a firm handshake and waiting the two standard days to call, our lovebirds have been together ever since.

Earlier this week, I was talking to Meghan about boys, clearly not a shocking topic of choice. Meghan oh-so-wisely told me…

“You will not find love. No matter how hard you look. Love will find you. And, it will probably be at a very inappropriate moment, as it doesn't have the greatest timing, nor does it care what is convenient for you.”

Apparently love waits until you’re late for work and forces you to do things you’d never do. Like follow a gorgeous woman down the street, armed with only a vague idea of what to say and with your pride on the line.

My only advice for you today, Meghan and Stephen, is to remember those little moments. Remember Stephen, what pushed you to get out of your seat and follow Meghan down the street, even though it was totally inconvenient and out of character.

And Meghan, remember what had you focused on this cute boy (other than just his cute backside) and what made you say yes to the gentleman who gave you an introductory handshake when all you wanted to do was throw yourself at him.

Meghan and Stephen, this day today and your love for each other is proof that fairy tales do exist.

Congratulations Meghan and Stephen on your beautiful wedding. Cheers -- to love, laughter and happily ever after!

Today's Starbucks wisdom (#283)

"The most important thing in life is to stop saying 'I wish' and start saying 'I will.' Consider nothing impossible, then treat possibilities as probabilities." -- David Copperfield

No substitute for the zoo

These ads brighten my day. I adore them. Clever, simple, effective.

There are tons more... this series is dogs that are made to look like other animals, but there's also one I've seen of a hairy man eating a banana... hilarious.

Somedays I am proud to be a new Albertan... and others?

News: "Adapt to our voting patterns or go back where you came from" is the message from a man looking to run for the PCs in Calgary Egmont. Craig Chandler says people who have moved here have told him they plan to vote Liberal. He says the conservative culture made Alberta what it is and if people don't like it they can leave. Premier Stelmach says that message isn't coming from the PC Party. CityTV Edm., CHED

Yikes. I think many Albertans fail to realize that without immigrants (either from other countries or other Canadian provinces) Alberta would be in incredibly bad shape right now. Alberta needs people badly to keep this economy going the way it is. Labour shortages are already at dangerous levels... imagine what they'd be like if people started leaving!

I agree that Alberta does have a somewhat small "c" conservative culture... but that shouldn't be a problem, even if people do want to vote Liberal. I don't see it as a "take it or leave it" situation, it's certainly not what democracy is all about. I function quite well here thankyouverymuch.

Colour me impressed

Oh McGuinty. I love it when any politician is willing to make something completely controversial into an election issue. It shows that they are not only willing to make a decision rather than sit on the fence, but they are willing to place their political life on the line for aforementioned issue.

Which is apparently how it is with McGuinty and pesticides (full article here).

Mr. McGuinty will make a provincewide ban on the cosmetic use of pesticides on lawns, gardens and parks, which can pose a health risk, part his platform for the Oct. 10 provincial election, a Liberal party source said yesterday.

"We're going to better protect the health of kids and families," the source said. Ontario would be following Toronto and many other municipalities in the province that have enacted such bans.

It's actually slightly surprising that the provincial government is moving on this so fast. It's been a little more than a year since we passed a bylaw banning the cosmetic use of pesticides in London (Ontario, not UK)... and when we were talking to citizen groups and the Medical Officer of Health, etc. there... they seemed to think that it would follow smoking and take years for the province to take a stand.

Good for you McGuinty. For proving us wrong.

Haunted by lemony visions... and the prospect of more weddings

A couple weeks ago I had this incredibly random dream which involved light, fluffy, lemon cupcakes. I can not gets this vision of cupcake heaven out of my head, even though I have long since been a huge lemon fan. Must. Make. These. Cupcakes. The need haunts me and I know not why.

I think there may be a problem with the fact that every time I get a drunk-dial in the middle of the night I fear it is another friend telling me that they are engaged. Who calls me after 4 a.m., boyfriend in tow, merely to tell me how in love they are and yet how they are thinking of me at the same time? ...oh right, Erin does. Stay away from the Koolaid.

Speaking of weddings, my cousin is getting married in Cuba in the spring and I'm seriously considering going. Even with the prospect of Europe. One of my friends called me "moneybags" last night when I was explaining this to which I say... no mortgage, no little family, no car... what else is there to spend money on but travel? Works for me.

Megpie's wedding countdown is three weeks. Brother is getting married in five. Airplane tickets have (finally) been purchased and I don't nearly hate Air Canada so much anymore due to the lovely ticket counter lady at the airport. Though I still hate them plenty. West Jet is my airline love. The dress is nearly ready. My bags are far from packed. My duties are still a little bit unclear. But I am getting a little bit excited. It'll be good to go home and see all the friends/family who I have left back in Ontario. And I shall get to spend the night with the littlest sister in her university abode, which will be all sorts of girly fun (though she must wake up in the morning for class before we head home to the farm).

Still reading Sex, Drugs and Cocoa Puffs. Still loving Klosterman. Even though at times he is ridiculously pretentious and I don't particularly agree with him... I can't remember actually laughing out loud at a book so much. In weird places. Like on the bus surrounded by sweaty strangers. Hilarity. People should read this book if only for this reason. The man is funny.

Last night, went to Packrats with my peeps. Had the best wine of my life. And the food. Oh the food was amazing. Everyone must go (or try to go) here. My new favourite restaurant. Ever. Also, check out the Fringe. Because it is arty and awesome. And deliciously dirty.